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Luke
Luke is an Irish narrow gauge tank engine who lives on the Skarloey Railway. He is kept busy working at the Blue Mountain Quarry, where he shunts trucks of slate around the quarry and taking the slate to wherever it is needed. For a long time, Luke hid in the Blue Mountain Quarry, out of fear that he would be sent away due to an accident he believed he had caused in his past. However, when the truth came out, Luke became happier and came out of hiding. Biography ''Thomas & Friends Prior to coming to Sodor, Luke had worked on a land close by to the Island. It had been his dream to go to Sodor, and he was overjoyed upon finding out he would be needed there. During the trip to Sodor, Luke traveled alongside a yellow, Cuban engine who would be working on Sodor too. When the ship arrived at Brendam Docks, Luke pleaded for the workmen to unload him first. As he was being lifted off the ship, Luke swung right into the yellow engine and hit him, and with no brakes or chocks to stop him, the yellow engine rolled off the deck and landed in the sea. Luke was taken to the Steamworks to be mended, but never heard from the yellow engine again, fearing that he had been scrapped for no longer being useful. He blamed himself for the accident, and became ashamed of himself for what he had done. After being mended, Luke went up to the Blue Mountain Quarry, where he told the narrow gauge engines what had happened. Fearing that he would be sent away if either of the two controllers heard about him, the narrow gauge engines allowed Luke to hide in the quarry and do his work, keeping him a secret from the outside world for several years. However, that all changed when Thomas came up to the Quarry to fill in for Paxton, who had been badly damaged in an accident. While doing his work, Thomas spotted Luke numerous times, and even saw him close up when the two ran into each-other. At first, the narrow gauge engines denied having any involvement with Luke, but when they were confronted by Thomas, they confessed to him that they knew about Luke and that they kept him a secret to make sure he would never be sent away, but they refused to tell him why Luke was so scared. Luke continued to remain apprehensive about Thomas, watching him from the shadows of the quarry tunnels while he did his work. However, when Thomas saved Skarloey from having an accident, Luke warmed up to him and came out of hiding, apologizing for hiding from him and asking if he wanted to be his friend. The two engines happily worked together for the rest of the day, and Luke even told Thomas about his past, but he was cut short when he noticed Paxton had been eavesdropping on their conversation. Eventually, Thomas managed to discover who the yellow engine Luke had mentioned was, and he rushed back to the Quarry to tell Luke what he knew. However, Luke and the narrow gauge engines believed he had betrayed him, turning against him and fleeing to the upper terraces when Diesel and Paxton arrived, the former intending to have Luke sent away for what he had done in his past. Thomas was determined to speak to Luke and even traveled along the narrow gauge tracks to reach him, but he was too big for the small rails and crashed through a buffer stop, hanging dangerously over the edge of a cliff. Luke noticed this and, without a second thought, rushed over to Thomas and saved him from falling over the edge, and he helped him back to the incline. Unfortunately, Thomas was too heavy for Owen, and the two engines plummeted down the incline and landed at the bottom, but both made it out safely. However, the Fat and Thin Controllers arrived at the scene, and began to question Thomas and Luke on their actions. Fortunately, Paxton arrived at the Quarry with Victor, who told Luke that ''he was the yellow engine he had once knew, and reassured him that it had only been an accident and he was not to blame. Luke became happy for the first time in years, and he was accepted into the narrow gauge fleet by the Thin Controller. (TVS; Blue Mountain Mystery) Luke later found a young deer roaming through the Quarry, and decided to take care of it. Despite the other engines' suggestions, he chose to keep the deer in the Quarry and ordered everyone to work quietly so as not to disturb it. However, when this failed, Luke took the deer to Ulfstead Castle, where it was reunited with its mother. Luke was sad to see the deer go, but was happy to know that he would be allowed to visit it from time to time. (TVS; Luke's New Friend) When Luke made another trip to Ulfstead Castle, he met up with Millie. After a small argument, the two engines decided to swap jobs, and Luke did Millie's work at the Castle while she went up to the Blue Mountain Quarry. Although Luke struggled to get used to Millie's more quiet and slow work, he ended up loving the experience, but was glad to return to the Quarry. (TVS; The Switch) During the Christmas season, Luke was sent to deliver a Christmas tree. However, he became stuck on a steep hill, and he ran out of sand to dry the rails. Duncan was initially rude to him, but upon realizing that he had hurt his feelings, he helped him up the hill. (TVS; Duncan the Humbug) Personality and Traits Luke is a young, cheerful and enthusiastic little engine, who loves working in all the hustle and bustle of the Blue Mountain Quarry. He is bubbly and full of life, and as a young engine, he had always dreamed of working on Sodor. Luke is also incredibly brave if one of his friends is in danger and will come to their rescue, as shown when he jumped in to rescue Thomas from falling off a cliff even though he was mad with him at the time. For a long time, Luke was wrecked with guilt and shame, believing he had been responsible for indirectly causing another engine's demise. Out of fear that he would be sent away, he hid in the tunnels of the Quarry, and was haunted by his past for several years. When the truth came out about the accident, Luke became a happier engine and was able to move on, now knowing that it had only been an accident. Technical Details Basis Luke is based on the Kerr Stuart Wren, a small and simple type of tank engine built by Kerr Stuart & Co. between 1903 and 1931. They were used for a variety of jobs and were used in several countries, such as India, Brazil, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, and over 160 were built. Luke has some slight modifications from his original basis, such as buffers, chain couplings and an enclosed cab. In the seventeenth season, he received a permanent headlamp and a lamp-iron on each of his cylinders. LukeBasis.jpg Livery Luke is painted pea green with white lining and gold boiler bands. His bufferbeam is painted red, his buffers are silver, and his wheels are black with white rims. His name is painted on the sides of his saddle-tank in white, and he carries his number on black plates on each side of his cab. Appearances Thomas & Friends * Season 17 - Luke's New Friend and The Switch * Season 18 - Duncan the Humbug Specials: * Blue Mountain Mystery * King of the Railway Trivia * Luke uses the same whistle sound as Rheneas at a lower pitch. Axel also uses this whistle sound. * Luke's number is derived from the year he was built: 1922. * Luke has gone through the most prototypes of any engine in the Wooden Railway range, going through a total of four prototypes until the final design was chosen. Merchandise Gallery References Category:Thomas & Friends-exclusive characters Category:Skarloey Railway Category:Blue Mountain Quarry Category:Narrow gauge engines Category:Steam locomotives Category:Tank engines Category:0-4-0